Credit: Imago/West Ham on X

Daniel Davis

Thu 2 April 2026 7:10, UK

West Ham United academy gem Josh Landers didn’t need long to make an impression on loan – with his new club already predicting he will have a “massive” impact this season.

Landers made his debut for National League side Boreham Wood in a goalless draw with rock-bottom Truro City on Saturday afternoon, just two days after joining.

The 19-year-old will remain at Meadow Park until the end of the campaign, in the hope that he will be able to play a part in securing them promotion to the Football League.

The young forward was brought on as a late substitute at the weekend, but unfortunately did not have time to catch the eye. Regardless, he has been tipped for a big future.

Boreham Wood are 16 points inside the play-offs, practically guaranteeing them a shot at making it to Wembley, and West Ham will closely monitor Landers along the way.

How has Josh Landers done at Boreham Wood so far?

It’s fair to say that Landers has already won over head coach Luke Garrard.

He has become the third Irons talent to play for Boreham Wood this season alone, following in the footsteps of goalkeeper Finlay Herrick and defender Junior Robinson.

While Herrick stood out during his brief stay, Landers could yet top his efforts, judging from the effusive praise from Garrard after his first training sessions in Hertfordshire.

The teenager delivered the goods during a ‘Bronco’ fitness test designed to measure a player’s speed and endurance, with Garrard describing his score as “unbelievable”.

“He’s coming to us fresh,” he added. “I like the fact that he’s coming in with an eagerness, and we have him for the remainder of the season.

“I believe he’s going to have a massive impact on what we want to achieve.”

Garrard certainly would have taken notice of Landers’ heroics against Boreham Wood during West Ham’s National League Cup final defeat in March, in which he scored.

His classy strike saw his goal tally rise to 18 from his 33 starts for the U-21s and U-18s.

No bad blood at Boreham Wood

Clearly, West Ham secured a perfect loan for Landers, who has hit the ground running.

Fortunately, though, there does not appear to be any lingering bad blood between the two clubs after the Hammers chose to recall Herrick just 10 games into his loan spell.

The stopper was outstanding, registering seven clean sheets before Nuno Espirito Santo decided to use him as a back-up to his first-team goalkeepers at the London Stadium.

While the decision did not go down well at Boreham Wood, there remains a productive connection between them and West Ham, with Landers the latest to directly benefit.

Now, the ace will hope to start for the first time during a busy Easter schedule, with The Wood hosting Wealdstone on April 3 before visiting Solihull Moors three days later.